Madness
by Random Flapdoodle
Summary: What if Zane's dark side began to develop long before he graduated? First season, no pairings, rated for darkness.
1. Obelisk Dorms

Authors Notes: I do not own Yugioh GX or any of the characters in this fic (except Kenji).

* * *

Syrus sighed. He was lost. For him, this wasn't an uncommon occurrence; he never had a very good sense of direction. But this just took the cake. He was lost in the vast corridors of the Obelisk Blue boys' dorm.

It had started when Professor Banner had asked him to take a note to Dr. Crowler. He had the feeling that somewhere deep inside Banner secretly hated him. This one task had proved that; Crowler was a monster.

But being the timid boy that he was, Syrus had been unable to refuse. So he had taken the note to Crowler. Thankfully, he had been pouring over a mountain of paperwork, and had taken the note without much conversation (or scolding). Just as he thought he was in the clear, Syrus was given another task: deliver a note to an Obelisk Blue student.

Syrus had never heard of the boy, and when he had tried to get some sort of clue where the student might be found, Crowler had shooed him away without another word.

So now he was lost. In a massive building, whose occupants all hated him simply because he wore red. He'd been wandering aimlessly for almost half an hour now, and he was beginning to panic. Syrus knew that eventually he would have to knock on one of the doors and ask for help. But he also was well aware that it was likely that he would be mocked or shunned by the student inside, and only slightly less likely that he would be physically harmed.

He couldn't wander around forever, though. So he worked up his courage and knocked on a random door. He bowed his head and held his hands behind his back, preparing for whatever would come. The door opened silently, due to the top of the line maintenance of the Obelisk Blue dorm.

"Hello?"

"Um…hi," Syrus squeaked, not looking up at the boy who had answered the door, "I'm Syrus a-and I'm here to deliver a message…but I don't know who this person is or where to find him so I was…wondering if you…could…" he trailed off, and began scuffing the toes of his shoes on the tile.

The Obelisk student remained silent. Syrus began to chew on his lower lip. His mind was already forming an escape plan, although he would probably be too terrified to even move, once the moment came to run.

"Syrus?" The sudden noise and the sound of his name shocked Syrus into biting his lip hard enough to draw blood.

"Look at me," the Obelisk commanded firmly. The blue haired boy was too afraid not to. He lifted his eyes slowly to catch a glimpse of the occupant of the room whose door he had knocked on.

"Zane?!" he squealed, upon recognizing his brother. His large eyes grew even wider and he stared at the older boy. Blood from his split lip trickled down his chin, but he didn't seem to notice.

"Come in, Syrus." It wasn't so much an invitation as a command. And when Syrus didn't comply, Zane seized his arm and literally dragged him into the room. Being quite a bit shorter than his brother, Syrus didn't have much choice in the matter. But Zane was being gentle, and his grip on the younger boy's arm was firm, but not painful and certainly not bruising.

Syrus whimpered softly as his brother pulled him into the room. He was frightened; most encounters he had with Zane ended badly.

Despite all of the emotional abuse, Zane had never physically hurt him. That was one thing Syrus felt grateful for.

The two walked into the suite of a room and Zane immediately sat gracefully down on the couch. It seemed to Syrus that everything Zane did was graceful, while he could barely get across a room without tripping. Just one more way that he was inferior to his brother.

Syrus stood in the middle of the room, clutching the note tightly in his sweating hands. Zane looked at him and frowned.

"…come over here." Syrus stumbled over to the couch on completely numb legs. He collapsed onto the cushions, about two feet away from his brother. Zane held out a hand, palm up, as if expecting to receive something. Syrus stared at him blankly. The elder brother's eyes flickered to the damp piece of paper in the other's hand. Syrus blinked twice.

"The note, Syrus."

"…the note?" he replied, totally oblivious.

"Yes, the note." Syrus looked down at his hand and gasped.

"The note!" he yelped, and promptly handed it to Zane. "I'm sorry," he whimpered meekly as the older boy opened the note.

An eternity of tense moments passed as Zane's cold blue eyes scanned the crumpled, sweat-dampened paper. He then sighed and set the note down on the end table, next to a half-empty coffee mug. Zane picked the mug up, and took deep drink. He scowled, wrinkling his nose in disgust, and set the cup down.

Syrus stared at the carpet, completely still, his body wracked with tension. Occasionally, his eyes flickered up to his older brother. Zane made no move to chase him from the room, but he wasn't exactly inviting him to stay, either. Thus, Syrus was frozen in place, becoming increasingly sick to his stomach.

"You'd better deliver that, Syrus." The younger boy jumped at his name.

"D-deliver?"

"The note, Syrus." Zane sounded somewhat annoyed. Syrus winced at his brother's tone, shying away from him even more.

"Okay...but Zane, I don't know who this is or where to find him."

"That's why I'm going to come with you," Zane explained. He said each word slowly and clearly, as if trying to teach a very complex subject to a very stupid person. Syrus flushed, and hot tears began to gather in his eyes.

Zane left the couch and disappeared. Syrus heard water running, but didn't give it much thought. He sniffled and wiped his face with his sleeve, not noticing the reddish stain on the white part.

I"What have I gotten myself into? Zane'll probably hate me even more after this. Stupid screw-up. I can't even deliver a note. Why did it have to be his room?"/I

He began to sob quietly, shoving his arm to his mouth to stifle the noise.

When he looked up, his brother was standing in front of him, holding a royal blue washcloth in his left hand. Threads of water ran over Zane's knuckles and thin tendrils of steam rose from the cloth. Syrus' mind anticipated pain, and he cringed.

"Calm down, Syrus. You have blood smeared all over your face," he said, as if that explained all but the most profound mysteries of the world. Zane cupped Syrus' chin with his right hand, and gently cleaned the blood off of his younger brother.

"You shouldn't bite your lip like that. You'll end up having scars."

"I'm sorry."

"It's…forget it." Zane finished wiping the blood off, and tossed the washcloth into the hamper. He took the almost-forgotten note from the end table and put it in his pocket.

"Come on. This note could be something important."

* * *

To be continued...


	2. Corridors

Authors Notes: I do not own Yugioh GX or any of the characters in this fic (except Kenji).

* * *

The Truesdale brothers walked down the vast, sterile corridors of the Obelisk Blue dorms. White walls gleamed, blue tiles sparkled. Harsh white light flooded every corner and reflected off of the cold marble floors in shimmering flashes. No cockroaches here, only cleanliness fit for gods. The scent of the place was nothing if not pure; the smell of new carpets and floor wax. It stung Syrus's sensitive nose and made his eyes water.

Syrus was overwhelmed. The boy's eyes were usually fixed firmly on the ground, but he couldn't help trying to take in the uncaring beauty of the Home of the Elite.

Although he longed to improve, Syrus found that he hated the atmosphere of the Obelisk Dorms. It was too quiet, too cold. As vermin-ridden as it was, he preferred Slifer. He missed it already.

_I want to go home. Why did it have to be me? I just want to go see Jaden and Chumley. I don't want to be here. I don't want to be with my brother._

He realized how terrible that was, but he couldn't deny that it was true. Being with Zane was simply too stressful. Syrus was stressed enough; he didn't need his brother around to worsen the situation.

The click of Zane's heels ceased suddenly, and he turned to face his brother. Syrus, too absorbed in his own worries, kept walking, and eventually bumped into him.

"I-I'm sorry, Zane."

A ghost of a smile touched Zane's lips for an instant.

"Can't you watch where you're going, Sy?" His tone was laced with playfulness, which Syrus didn't notice.

"I'm sorry," he repeated, earning himself a sigh from his older sibling.

"Don't worry about it."

Zane began walking again, and Syrus followed. He wasn't looking around any more; his eyes were focused firmly on spotless tile. The silence settled itself in once again, interrupted only by occasional mechanical whirrs and the clack of Zane's boots.

_Does he hate being with me as much as I hate being with him? I really wish that I never had a brother. I love him, but we're just too different. We'll never be close._

"Zane?"

"Yeah?"

"Do…do you know this guy, um," he consulted the now seriously crumpled note, "Kenji?"

"I've dueled him a few times. Why?"

Syrus mumbled something under his breath and shoved the note into his back pocket.

"What was that, Sy?"

"Oh…I was just wondering."

They had been walking for quite some time, and Syrus was beginning to wonder how large the Obelisk Dorms were and how much longer they would be walking. Zane answered his mental question seconds later.

"We're almost there. His room is A-475."

Syrus glanced at the doors as they slipped in, then out of his vision. A-469, A-470, A-471…he began to get dizzy, and shook his head.

"How many rooms are there here?" Zane didn't respond immediately, and Syrus mentally cursed himself, assuming that his brother was ignoring him.

"One thousand, I believe. There are five hundred 'A' rooms and five hundred 'B' rooms. 'A' rooms are for the first half of the alphabet, that is, for people with last names beginning with letters 'A' through 'M,' and 'B' rooms are for the second half, letters 'N' through 'Z.' You would have never found him. You were on the totally wrong side-"

"-the side with 'Truesdale,'" Syrus finished, and buried his face in his hands.

"Yeah," Zane said, with a good-natured chuckle. He paused. "Who sent you to deliver this note, anyway?"

"Dr. Crowler."

Zane stopped in front of Room A-475, and frowned. Syrus jogged half-heartedly to catch up, and stood beside his brother.

"And he didn't give you any clue as to where to find him?"

"Uh-uh. He just handed me the note, and told me to deliver it."

"I'll have a talk with him. Sometimes he just goes too far."

Syrus gaped at his brother. Did Zane…did Zane actually just stand up for him? Or at least, offer to stand up for him?

Zane held his hand out to Syrus. This time, his younger brother got the hint immediately, and handed him the piece of paper. It was now an odd grayish color, and becoming fuzzy around the edges. Zane held it between his index and middle fingers, as if it was a Duel Monsters card.

With his other hand, he knocked on the door of Kenji Kosuke.

* * *

To be continued...


	3. Kenji

I do not own Yugioh GX or any of the characters in this fic (except Kenji)

* * *

There was no answer. 

Syrus whimpered and leaned against the wall.

Zane knocked again, louder this time. The brothers heard a muffled thump from inside the room, and a sleepy moan soon followed.

"Kenji?" Zane called, and rapped on the door a third time.

The door of Room A-475 slid open to reveal the second year Obelisk Blue student, Kenji Kosuke.

"This had better be important. I have an exam this afternoon, and I need to rest up." He glared at Zane and Syrus with sleep-clouded dull green eyes. His short, sandy brown hair stood up in erratic tufts. A wrinkled white tee shirt and faded blue jeans hung on him like clothes on a scarecrow.

"Eh…Truesdale? What do you want?" He blinked, and peered at Syrus. "And who's the kid?"

Zane offered him the note, which he took and opened immediately. Kenji scanned it briefly; then shoved it into his jeans pocket.

"Right. Thanks, Zane. But you never answered my second question."

"I never answered your first question, either." Kenji laughed, and leaned against the doorframe.

"Ah, Zane, I'm finally beginning to see why you're the top student here." He nipped at the fingernails on his right hand absently. His left found his hip and rested there.

"This is my younger brother Syrus," Zane said.

Kenji leaned forward, so that he and Syrus were nose-to-nose. The shorter boy leaned back, and knocked his head against the wall lightly.

"Slifer, huh?" Syrus flushed and turned away.

"Do you know Jaden Yuki?"

IHow did I know that he would ask that?/I

"Yeah, we're best friends," Syrus replied, without much enthusiasm. He scuffed the toe of his shoe on the tile absently.

"I've heard that he's been making some serious news here. Honestly. Beating that brat Princeton and all. More power to him," he paused, "I guess."

Zane watched the two of them with calm, cautious interest.

"Jaden…Yuki?" he repeated. He pronounced the name slowly and thoughtfully. His eyes took on a strange, cloudy look.

Syrus paled. He knew his brother's tone of voice and expression all too well. That was how he looked when he was committing some vital scrap of information to memory.

Jaden was being marked.

"L-leave him alone."

Zane and Kenji turned toward Syrus. Kenji's expression was mild surprise; Zane's hovered close to shock before darkening to anger.

"BWhat/B did you say?"

"I said, 'Leave him alone,'" Syrus said. His voice was calmer and lower now. He turned to face Zane, and clenched his fists tightly. Although his eyes glistened with tears, they burned with something that was startlingly close to hatred.

"Syrus, what are you-" Zane began, only to be cut off.

"You know exactly what I mean. I know that look. You want to duel Jaden. To test him. And to test yourself. Don't. He's not some kind of meter to gauge your strength." Syrus's tone remained even, and he was able to meet his older brother's eyes.

"I'll duel whomever I want, Syrus." Zane narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms.

"You can't just use people like that, Zane. You can't use IJaden/I like that. I'll protect him from you."

"You'll 'protect' him? How do you intend to do that?"

"I…" It was then that Syrus's façade collapsed. He hung his head and clutched his elbows in his palms. What could he do? How could he expect to protect Jaden when he couldn't even stand up for himself? He trembled and cried quietly.

"I don't know. But I will."

Syrus bolted down the long corridor, keeping his shoulders hunched and his head down. His shoes thudded clumsily as he ran. His older brother watched and laughed to himself. Kenji regarded him cautiously.

"Syrus...do what you have to. But know your limits."

As Syrus's footsteps faded, the hallway became silent. Zane didn't feel quite right. Thoughts that simply weren't his ran around his mind like diseased animals. His skin felt too hot and tight. As he ran trembling fingers over his face, he realized that he was smiling so broadly that blood leaked from the corners of his mouth.

"What was that all about?" Kenji asked. He brushed a stray tuft of hair away from his eyes and laughed. By chance, he turned his head and caught sight of the older Truesdale. His eyes bulged and the blood drained from his face.

I"What's wrong with him?"/I

Zane noticed Kenji's expression and tried to chuckle, but it came out sounding more like a hysterical squeal.

"Oh nothing. Just a little sibling rivalry."

Kenji froze in terror, gaping at Zane. The color drained from his face, and he groped for the doorknob wildly.

"Go home, Truesdale," he said, trying desperately to quell the trembling in his voice.

A thoroughly confused Zane took his suggestion, and began his trip back to his room. Despite all that had just happened, he could not get his mind off of Jaden Yuki. Blood dribbled down his chin and stained his white uniform.

But he couldn't seem to wipe that manic grin off of his face.

* * *

**End.**


End file.
